The Kongversation: Donkey Kong Universe Discussion

20 years later, Hyle and Dustin PANsplain the DK Bongos and the Donkey Kong series' brief but defining turn toward rhythm games with the Spotlight episode on the original Donkey Konga!

In the first Kongversation "Game Pitch" episode, Hyle, Jeff, and Dustin lay out their unified vision for a new Donkey Kong-related title that would propel a once-forgotten supporting character with renewed cultural cache to unimagined heights: Swanky Kong's Pizza Buffet!

Hyle and Malik bid fair winds to Stinky Ape Summer 2024 with a LIVE Talk Like a Pirate Day episode! First broadcast on https://twitch.tv/dkvine, it's a discussion on every single pirate Kremling from off of Donkey Kong Country 2 and Donkey Kong Land 2. Why are the Kremling Kuthroats the best video game antagonists in history?

Super Mario Party Jamboree was playable at PAX West, which coincided with the announcement that Pauline would be making her Mario Party debut in the game. Coincidentally, DK Vine's resident Pauline simp was on hand to give us some show floor first impressions!

It's Mr. Machacek! Rare's longest-tenured employee joins the Kongversation to trade in the QA for some Q and As and discuss his storied career. From programming Donkey Kong Land and It's Mr Pants to devising Stop 'N' Swop across Rare's N64 titles, we get to the heart (and into the pants) of some long-standing rumors and misconceptions from the last 36 years!

Leave it to the Kongversation to spend three hours talking about the beaver. The Gnawty, that is. The very first enemy seen in the Donkey Kong Country series. A hapless rodent for all seasons in Banjo-Kazooie! And a right bother in Donkey Kong 64. Are Gnawties iconic, or are they just a dam joke?

It's DK Vine's silver jubilee! First broadcast live on https://twitch.tv/dkvine on August 22, 2024, Hyle and Mitchell reflect on how a Donkey Kong and Rare website founded in 1999 has stubbornly refused to die. Featuring messages from the DK Vine staff and friends of the show, it's a celebration of the enduring power and communal bonds of fandom!

To better understand where Conker ended up, we need to first understand where he came from. Hyle and Dustin explore his hometown of Willow Woods, as seen in Conker's Pocket Tales, and piece together how it fits in with the lands of Bad Fur Day and the rest of the Donkey Kong Universe!

30 years ago, an iconic video game character was born in the English Midlands, becoming Rare's breakout star and growing to be an adopted Nintendo mainstay standing alongside their homegrown favorites. Hyle and Cameron discuss the design evolution of Diddy Kong, from his earliest days as a new look for Donkey Kong Jr. to his status as a Video Game Hero today!

Hyle and Jeff "Listup" their top 10 Donkey Kong Universe games! Which elite titles from the past 30 years made their lists? Why did some controversial picks make the cut, while some widely beloved entries fail to reach the tiptop of the Tiptup? Hopefully, neither of the hosts is too Tanktup to make their case!

Which period of time is the least discussed from the height of Donkey Kong Country Mania? The months before Donkey Kong Country Mania! The Kongversation goes back 30 years to the summer of 1994 when Nintendo of America announced DKC, and their whole new attitude, to the world at the Summer Consumer Electronics Show!

Season of Thieves: Season 12 introduced new tools and mechanics, some a long time coming, that further evolved Rare's bestselling pirate adventure. However, as the gameplay possibilities expanded, the game's narrative integrity degraded. Welcome to the Sea of Thieves season where ghost parents used a magic sword off-screen to remember their daughter's arm!

Expresso the ostrich has never reached the stature of Rambi, Squawks, or Enguarde in the menagerie of Animal Buddies in the Donkey Kong series. But he's come close. And despite being mostly known for the original Donkey Kong Country, he's had one of the more diverse and storied careers out of not just the Buddies, but all DK characters! The Kongversation explores the adventures of Expresso: the jo...

The Donkey Kong Universe has been in a severe game drought since 2019, but it's been even longer if you've been counting since the last original, standalone Donkey Kong game (10 years) or the last Banjo-Kazooie title (16 years). How does a diehard fanatic of any or all of these franchises cope? Hyle is joined by Josh Wallen from off of the Geek Critique to discuss historical methods he's used in t...

We answer some of the calls we've received on the DK Vine Hotline (1-202-630-VINE) over the summer game announcement season concerning Donkey Kong Country Returns HD, Yooka-Replaylee, Super Mario Party Jamboree, and more!

Celebrating 20 years, Rare's overlooked and underappreciated Game Boy Advance gem Sabre Wulf followed up Sabreman's revival in Banjo-Tooie with a sprawling, innovative adventure unlike anything else in the GBA library. Hyle is joined by gaming collector and handheld aficionado Freezer to discuss one of the DKU's more obscure branches!

The Kongversation explores Forever Entertainment S.A., the mysterious studio behind the mask of Donkey Kong Country Returns HD!

Broadcast live earlier in the day on https://twitch.tv/dkvine, Hyle and Dustin discuss today's Nintendo Direct and the surprisingly logical decision it announced: the definitive version of Donkey Kong Country Returns!

Broadcast live earlier in the day on https://twitch.tv/dkvine, Hyle is joined by the Cartoon Gamer for a robust and lively chat on all things Yooka-Replaylee, Playtonic's recently announced enhanced remaster of the original Yooka-Laylee!

Broadcast live earlier in the day on https://twitch.tv/dkvine, DK Vine discusses the 2024 Xbox Showcase! While lacking any grand Banjo-Kazooie revival announcement or even an update on Everwild, we did get the expected Sea of Thieves trailer... and the surprise trailer for another long-awaited Rare franchise reboot.

Broadcast live earlier in the day on https://twitch.tv/dkvine, DK Vine kicks off its Stinky Ape Summer by discussing what's possibly on deck concerning Rare and Donkey Kong in the upcoming game showcases from Xbox and Nintendo... and what was just revealed by Playtonic in the form of Yooka-Replaylee!

Diddy Kong Racing upended Donkey Kong Country fandom in 1997 by setting itself up as a backdoor pilot for Rare's Banjo-Kazooie and Conker franchises. This created a lot of expectations for the rest of the cast. Hyle and Jeff reflect on all of the Diddy Kong Racing spinoffs we wanted... and some that came close to existing!

The original Mario vs. Donkey Kong, which received a Nintendo Switch remake earlier this year, has turned 20! While controversial within corners of the Donkey Kong fandom, the series has endured for two decades with numerous sequels. Resident Mario vs. Donkey Kong enthusiast I.M. Gibbon joins noted skeptic Hyle to discuss the history of Donkey Kong Arcade Era revivals, how it led us here, and the...

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair." There was one Dickens of an E3 that contained enough Donkey Kong Universe games for two cities... and wildly di...

The Kongversation catches up with all the latest news and updates on the Donkey Kong Country half of Super Nintendo World! While the expansion has been delayed until the end of the year in Japan, Universal Orlando has fully revealed its existence for next year's Epic Universe. This includes new details, never-before-revealed specifics, and a fresh international identity for a certain Donkey Kong c...